Close to Home: Thinking bigger than Earth Day

Earth Day celebrations are gearing up throughout the Bay Area today. These celebrations remind us that the choices we make define the legacy we will leave to future generations. But Earth Day festivals can also have a dark side. Taking one day to consider our environmental footprint is valuable, but what counts most is what we do the other 364 days each year.

News about drought, fracking, air pollution and melting ice caps can feel so overwhelming that we tune it out. Instead of changing the channel, how about making 2016 the year you make one big change to truly help the planet?

Here are three examples of significant actions many of us could take to stand up to climate change and pollution.

1. Drive less. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, driving accounted for 28 percent of national greenhouse gas emissions in 2014. Make a pledge this year to change the way you get to work at least one day each week: carpool, take the bus, bike or walk or telecommute. This simple act alone would save 26 pound of carbon dioxide per person per week.

2. Invest in efficiency. Residential energy use accounts for about 17 percent of all greenhouse gases generated in the United States. Some of that energy stems from bad habits like leaving lights on when you leave the room or keeping your house so warm it's T-shirt weather in December. Keeping your lawn green through a hot summer wastes a lot of water.

California has initiatives to encourage folks to save both water and energy at home, but investing in home efficiency and renewable energy (like solar panels) can be expensive.

Still, upgrading your insulation, installing an efficient heating and cooling system and investing in water-smart toilets, showers and faucets all pay dividends in the long run. Plus, permanent upgrades to your home help you save resources without changing habits.

To help make these upgrades more affordable, most California communities offer Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing. PACE lets homeowners pay for upgrades over time through their property taxes with no money down. The nation's largest residential PACE provider, HERO, has helped to save 3.75 billion gallons of water and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 2.4 million tons since 2011.

Many utilities also offer rebates on efficient appliances and drought-tolerant landscaping. So even if you don't have cash on hand, there are tools available to make investments in efficiency more affordable.

3. Eat lower on the food chain, and clean your plate. Particularly with drought continuing to ravage California, this is one we should all heed. It takes more than 1,800 gallons of water to raise one pound of beef and more than 500 gallons per pound of chicken. Fifty gallons of water go into producing each lowly egg.

Compare that to 34 gallons per pound of broccoli or potatoes, and it's clear that focusing on the veg is the way to go.

Plus, the average American household wastes approximately 30 percent of its food; that translates to at least 25,000 gallons of water that may as well have been flushed away.

Let's all remember that now-famous adage from Michael Pollan: 'Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.'

All three of these examples require effort, money or both. And that's perhaps as it should be. The costs of pollution are real, so it makes sense that it would also cost something to avoid polluting.

But the benefits of protecting our environment, improving public health and keeping our planet livable are priceless.

Jake More, a web designer, is a Santa Rosa resident.